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My son is three years old and he is an extreme fan of dinosaurs. He managed to remember the name of most of them by listening to his teachers in day care and watching cartoons. I know this is most likely one of his innocent childish mindsets.

But I am wondering is it possible to leverage this feeling to the next level so that he keeps up with this interest and over the time he becomes more interested in truly learning about dinosaurs?

As a parent what do you do to advance your kids' particular interest?

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    Are you asking how to convince your child to continue being interested in dinosaurs, or asking how to enable him to further develop his interest assuming he has it?
    – Joe
    Commented Oct 28, 2019 at 17:32
  • The later one. Because as I mentioned he already has interest on it. I want to enable him to develop further on this, yes.
    – Samiron
    Commented Oct 28, 2019 at 17:36

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Children go from one interest to the next with bewildering speed. This isn't a bad thing. The entire world is new to them. They don't know what they like yet. If you try to push them toward just one particular thing simply because you think they need to specialize, then you restrict their interest at a time when they most need to be expanding.

It's okay to offer help in developing an interest, especially if it is something you can do together. Take him to the library and help him find books on dinosaurs (but if some other book interests him don't try to guide him away from it). Let him tell you all about what he learns. Ask him questions that he might be able to answer.

The key strategy is to focus on him, not on any particular interest or skill. Spending time with him and making what's important to him important to you tells him that he is important. If he focuses on one subject, praise his dedication. If he focuses on a hundred things, celebrate his enthusiasm and interest. There will be plenty of time later in life, once he has an idea of what actually interests him, for you to help pursue it.

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  • Thanks for your comment and I totally agree with what you said. His current situation is as you said If he focuses on one subject, praise his dedication. Thats what I want to do. He also has interest in solving puzzles and I put my best effort to encourage that. But the passion on Dynosaurs is visibly different.
    – Samiron
    Commented Oct 28, 2019 at 18:06
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    Most kids will obsess over their interests for a period of time from six months to a couple of years. Dinosaurs is one that I've seen in a couple of nieces. My eight year old niece had an astonishing ability to identify dinosaurs and rattle off their Latin names. By the time she was eleven, she had no interest in them whatsoever. My advice is be supportive and interested (library, internet, conversation) but when it goes, let it go.
    – Francine DeGrood Taylor
    Commented Oct 28, 2019 at 18:11
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    when it goes, let it go definitely, I myself also got the indepedence of choosing my own career myself from my parents and i will be doing to same as well. But sometimes a little more encourage and help turn things around and instead of letting it go, they may grab it harder, without any external enforcement of course.
    – Samiron
    Commented Oct 28, 2019 at 18:16
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Expose them to healthy, interesting things, and they will have the opportunity to explore the interests they choose to indulge.

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